


Generations at Odds

by orphan_account



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: F/M, Fake AH Crew, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Team Gents - Freeform, Team Lads, trans!Jack
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-28
Updated: 2016-06-28
Packaged: 2018-07-18 21:25:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7331206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Gents have ruled over Los Santos and most of the Southwestern United States for over a decade now. But, all that can change when a new up and coming gang, the Lil' Hellraisers, bust into town and make their presence known. It turns out, though, that their agenda is different than the Gents first imagined.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. We Have a Serious Problem

Raw, searing pain raced through Geoff's entire body, and he had to clench his jaw as hard as he could to hold back a scream. Smoke billowed around him, and he was able to piece the situation together while he picked himself up off of the hard ground outside of the gas station, now sticky with blood. 

He and his crew of three had been on their way to rough up the gas station attendant, a part time mercenary for their crew who had sold some information behind their backs. Just a usual Tuesday afternoon. However, after he and Jack had choppered in, guns blazing, and Ryan made the most dramatic entrance possible on his sleek black bike, propping a rocket launcher on his shoulder with a practiced ease, everything had gone to shit. They thought that they'd be able to make their extreme entrance with little backup and even less resistance, but as soon as Geoff and Jack landed next to Ryan, the whole gas station went up in flames. sending the crew flying backwards. 

So here he was, choking on thick smoke and searching for his crew in the rubble. He found Jack kneeling over Ryan checking his bleeding head. The younger man's mask was off and on the ground next to him, and Geoff almost didn't see the blood mixing with the man's red face paint.

"Is he ok?" Geoff had to yell over the sound of civilians screaming, as well as a few distant, secondary explosions. The busy woman nodded, wiping some soot from her eyes as she leaned back, ripping the bottom of her shirt to create a makeshift bandage. She wrapped it around Ryan's head quickly, before moving to the unconscious man's other side so Geoff could cover them. They were out in the open, but the smoke was so thick, it was unlikely that they would be seen.

"What the hell happened?" Jack questioned, looking around for clues. Geoff grunted, shrugging. The other woman knew about as much as he did. Despite his nonchalance, Geoff's eyes were alert, scouring the surrounding area for enemies. There was no way this was a simple accident; someone had planned this.

He was about to lift his phone to call for backup, when he heard some commotion ahead of them. There were footsteps, as well as the sound of someone reloading a gun. Geoff pulled out his own AP Pistol, and saw Jack do the same out of the corner of his eye. It was of course in that moment that Ryan began to stir, lifting his head off the ground and groaning. He reached up to take off his mask, and jolted upwards when he realized it wasn't on, only to groan and collapse again. Geoff picked up the missing skull mask, shushing the other man and sliding it over his face. He leaned in close to the other man's ear.

"Stay down. Someone's coming, so get ready to run. Burnie's gonna send a chopper in for our sorry asses, we just need to keep our heads down and get out of here." Ryan, though Geoff could tell was still groggy, nodded, pulling out a knife half-heartedly. Geoff almost smiled at his stubborn resilience, before Jack motioned to him, pointing ahead of them and slightly to the left. The crew's leader could feel his heart pounding, and he lifted his pistol, raising himself to one knee so he could bolt at a moment's notice, one hand around Ryan's collar so he could drag the younger man with him. The footsteps grew louder, and he could tell their visitors were almost upon them. It was probably three men, from the sound of it. He knew at least one of them was armed. The steps grew closer and closer, and he could then hear the steady, tell tale breathing pattern of gas masks. Great, just fucking great, Geoff thought to himself. We're not as invisible as I thought we were. Next to him, Jack had come to the same conclusion, glancing nervously over at Geoff, and then staring pointedly at Ryan. Ryan still appeared to be slightly out of it, but he gripped his knife with white knuckles nonetheless, taking silent breaths as he listened for their attackers, most likely letting his mercenary instincts take over. Geoff faced the source of the sound as well, finger resting patiently on the trigger, waiting to take out at least one of the figures that would soon appear from the thick haze of smoke. Just as he was aiming his gun, they stepped into view, and Geoff's blood ran cold. 

For a moment, he could only stare straight down the barrel of the rocket launcher pointed directly at his face, lowering his gun subconsciously, but he regained his wits quickly and followed the cold metal up to its source; a lanky figure sporting little body armor and a parachute. His face was unreadable, since not only was he wearing the gas mask, but Geoff saw him sporting some obnoxious aviators. Glad to see I'm dealing with a huge douche, Geoff thought to himself, and quickly flicked his gaze over to the other figure, the one to glasses-guy's right. 

He too was wearing a gas mask but had no weapons. Instead, Geoff could see an alarming amount of explosives in numerous harnesses, most of them hidden by his bulky leather jacket, and a pair of bandaged fists. Geoff could barely see this man's face, except for the face-splitting grin he had plastered across his face. 

Again, Geoff moved his gaze to the last man, on glasses-guy's left. He was standing in the most relaxed posture of all of them, casually holding a (bright pink?) sniper rifle under his right arm. His left hand was shoved deep in the pocket of his purple hoodie, calm as can be. It honestly gave Geoff the creeps, and he could feel Ryan's mounting tension, if the flexing muscles in his neck were any indicator. Without warning, Glasses Guy let out a loud, obnoxious laugh, that sounded way too much like a series of bird-like squawks to be taken seriously. However, the rocket launcher kept him in check for the time being. 

"You knobs were even easier to find than I thought you would be!" His voice, thick with a British accent, crooned. Geoff heard a snort come from Explosives Guy, but other than that Glasses Guy's companions remained silent. "Honestly, I guessed it would be at least three weeks, more like four, and that would have been a major drag, so I do thank you for being so predictable. You saved us a lot of bloody time, y'know?" 

Geoff was growing impatient, and he made sure to let it show on his face. The smoke was finally starting to settle, and the explosions had stopped so he could hear the distant wailing of police sirens. They'd be there in five minutes, tops, but if they were gonna get out of there and make it to Burnie's backup chopper they needed to leave soon. Now, preferably. As slowly as he could he rose to his feet, ignoring the faint protests of his knees and pulling Ryan with him. He managed to keep his eyes locked on Glasses Guy's aviators, staring him down defiantly. 

"So are you gonna shoot us, or are you just gonna stand there running your mouth like a fuckin' idiot?" He snapped, eyes blazing. Letting go of Ryan's collar, he reached town to gesture at his classic black suit, covered in dust and debris and sporting a few tears along the seams. "'Cause this suit costs 2.3K, and now it's ugly as dicks, and you're wasting my time, and my crew's time as well. So I suggest you either get to the point, get out of my way, or get shot in the fucking head."

He lifted his pistol to point it directly at Glasses Guy's mask, but before he could do that, out of the corner of his eye he saw a flash of movement, and like lightning Sniper Guy stepped forward and had his own gun cocked and ready, the muzzle inches from his face. Just as quickly, only a fraction of a second behind, Ryan grabbed the young man's arm, twisting it up and then to the side, wrestling him for his gun. Sniper Guy seemed slightly surprised but reacted quickly, dropping his gun out of reach in favor of a large knife on his hip. 

Glasses Guy only watched as the two struggled to get the upper hand on each other, each blow and lock transitioning into the next with practiced ease. Explosives Guy was a bit slower to react, but he let out a loud cry and lunged at Ryan, almost catching the latter off guard as he shifted his stance in order to defend himself. Ducking and weaving, he managed to land a hard blow on Explosions Guy, and Geoff heard a loud, sickening crack, but the bare fisted man refused to yield, only attacking with more power. 

Jack chose to intervene at this point, bringing the butt of her gun down hard on Sniper Guy's lower arm as he tried to bury his knife in Ryan's side. She slid effortlessly into the fight with a grace that would have been shocking to anyone who didn't know her, especially in her tall, thin heels, but Geoff was unsurprised. He and Glasses Guy just watched the fight, their guns still raised but attention on the whirling limbs and weapons in the fray. It wasn't until Geoff heard the faint sound of chopper blades that he chose to intervene, lifting his pistol towards the sky to fire off six warning shots.

The four brawlers stopped immediately, Jack with a fistful of Explosive Guy's exposed curls and Ryan blocking Sniper Guy's knife from diving into his neck. Geoff turned to Gavin again, who had lowered his rocket launcher and had a hand on his hip in a frustratingly cocky pose. 

"Alright assholes, this is how it's going to go." He paused, glancing at his crew and nodding at them. Jack stepped back first, dropping Explosives Guy with a sigh, stepping back, shoving her pistol in her waistband, and making her way over to Geoff, checking her nails and her phone at the same time to see the E.T.A. on their chopper. She leaned in close to Geoff's ear and whispered the answer. He nodded, turning his head again to look at Ryan pointedly. 

The other gent sighed and nearly stomped his foot like a petulant child, shoving Sniper Guy off him with a grunt. The other man took a step back before turning to get his rifle, grabbing Explosives Guy's arm on the way back towards their group. The redhead was sporting some nasty cuts, and his arm definitely looked broken. Turning his attention back to Gavin, Geoff continued.

"We're going to leave. You're not going to follow us. In fact, you're gonna do the complete opposite: if I don't see you guys going the complete opposite direction that we are, I won't hesitate to have you shot. I'm a nice guy, so I'm going to give you twelve hours to grab your shit and get the fuck out of our town." Geoff spoke calmly, waving his pistol occasionally for emphasis. Jack got his attention by clearing her throat, and indicated with her head towards an alley behind them that likely lead to their getaway chopper. He nodded, and then shot Gavin an icy glare. "We're easy to find because this is our damn city, asshole. Keep that in mind."

He started walking away, knowing he could turn his back on them when he had both Ryan and Jack as backup. "Twelve hours!" He called as a reminder, lifting his arm for a curt wave. If he hadn't been making such a nonchalant exit, he would have missed the British man's last remark.

"See you soon, Ramsey."

-O-

Ryan yanked his arm harshly away from Jack, wincing in pain, and he received a slap on the back of his head as punishment. 

"Stop whining, you baby, I've seen you deal with compound fractures with more fucking balls than this." She scolded, grabbing the other's arm and placing it back on the counter of the kitchen that they were currently working in. With practiced ease, she gripped the piece of shrapnel embedded in Ryan's shoulder and, with a quiet grunt, yanked it out. As quickly as she could she poured alcohol on the now gushing wound. 

Geoff watched them absentmindedly, itching at his own stitches. Jack gave him a cold glare when she noticed him, and the mustachioed man bashfully stopped, shoving his hands into his pockets instead. After a few minutes of sealing and bandaging the wound, Jack stood, walking to the sink to rinse off her now bloodstained hands.

"Alright Rye, you know the deal." She called over her shoulder, glancing back at the injured man. "No touching, no picking, no aggravating, and no whining." Ryan rolled his eyes, a sly grin spreading across his face.

"Whatever, mom." He snarked, and then it was Geoff's turn to smack him in the head. Ryan winced, turning to the older man with a betrayed look, and Geoff shrugged his shoulders as if to say, what did you expect? When Jack walked back over to them she helped Ryan up, and together they moved to the more comfortable living room. 

Ryan collapsed on the couch immediately, letting out a long, satisfied groan. Geoff threw himself onto the soft cushions of the couch perpendicular to Ryan, and Jack sat down gracefully beside Geoff, letting him wrap an arm around her shoulders while she scrolled through her sleek gray tablet. Ryan turned on the TV, flipping through channels absentmindedly while Geoff snuggled up to Jack, practically climbing into her lap, despite her annoyed grunts and efforts to push him away. Ryan turned to watch them affectionately, chuckling when Jack shoved Geoff’s head away from her neck, and placing a placating kiss to the older man’s temple after he shot her a pouty look. However, Ryan’s gaze whipped back to the television when he heard the news caster of the station he’d settled on, bringing up their failed heist from earlier that day.

“Guys- guys, look, check it out.” Ryan insisted, pulling the loving couple’s attention away from one another so they could watch the news program with him. 

“Disaster struck today at a downtown Los Santos gas station, when local gang The Gents showed up, only to meet head to head with a new up and coming gang in the city,” The reporter monotoned, brushing a lock of hair out of her eyes before continuing with the story. “The only knowledge anyone has about this gang is that they call themselves the ‘Lil’ Hellraisers’. Their identities are unknown, as they never go on a mission without some sort of mask. The Chief of Police led a press conference earlier today and said that his entire force is working on uncovering the identities of these highly volatile delinquents. The whereabouts of The Gents are still unknown. We will keep our viewers updated if we hear any new reports. Back to you, Alex.” 

Ryan quickly muted the TV, turning to look at Geoff. The mustachioed man was staring down at his hands, his brow furrowed and his light blue eyes blazing. When he glanced over to Jack, he saw her already madly tapping and scrolling through her tablet. Ryan watched them both with tense curiosity, until finally Jack cleared her throat, sitting up out of Geoff’s grip.

“‘Lil’ Hellraisers’. Up and coming gang, activity just moved to Achievement City about… two weeks ago. They were targeting FunHaus before us, getting their members arrested and taking their clients. Geoff, these kids work fast.” She glanced over at her lover to see him raise his hand to his mouth, tapping his upper lip with his thumb. He nodded at her to continue. “Let’s see, their leader, the asshole Brit with the sunglasses, goes by ‘Gavino’. Looks like he was some kind of anarchist arsonist combo in Great Britain about ten years ago, pissed off some major government organizations, but somehow managed to survive this long. The guy with a bunch of bombs strapped to him is ‘Mogar’- Army veteran, all brawn and no brains from what his report tells me but… I’m not gonna lie Geoff, I don’t believe that. You have to have some kinda intelligence to be carrying the kinds of explosives he was. He’s essentially their muscle. Last guy, the one with the pink sniper rifle, all I see is that he goes by ‘Brownman’, and he’s been labeled as extremely dangerous.”

Geoff sat up, nodding again, and Jack rested her tablet in her lap, looking at him for instructions. There was a short silence, before Geoff cleared his throat and spoke. 

“Get Matt up here. We need to see what he’s heard on the streets about them.” Jack nodded, typing quickly on her tablet again. “Ryan, can you secure our perimeter again? I’m gonna get in contact with Burnie and Gus while we wait for Matt.”

Ryan nodded, standing up quickly and exiting through the main door to the apartment they were hiding out in. Geoff let out a heavy breath and Jack set down her tablet again, wrapping her arms around his waist. 

“Matt’s on his way, he said he’ll be here in about fifteen minutes.” She mumbled against his shoulder, and Geoff nodded, turning to kiss the top of her head. 

“Thanks. I’m gonna call Burnie and Gus now, see if you can find anything else on the news feed.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and Jack nodded again, letting go of him with a soft squeeze of his shoulder, turning back to her tablet with eager eyes. Geoff dialed Gus’ number first, putting the phone up to his ear and standing, slowly making his way across the room to the large glass doors that overlooked the city. He heard a click, and Gus answered in a gruff, sleep-heavy voice.

“Hey, Gus.” Geoff practically sighed, shifting his weight onto his other foot. “Sorry to interrupt your beauty sleep, but we have a serious problem.”


	2. A Generous Invitation

Geoff looked at the tired faces sitting in front of him and cleared his throat, slapping his hand onto the whiteboard next to him. 

“You all know why you’re here. Most of you, if not all of you, know who these little assholes are. We need to figure out what they want.” Geoff turned to glance at the display next to him- on it were detailed notes on the Lil’ Hellraisers, and pictures of each of their members, excluding Brownman. Ryan had drawn a crude picture of a stick figure with a frowny face and a pink gun, which was almost more informative than the information they had managed to scrape together about the man. Geoff looked back at his main crew, along with Joel, Burnie, Gus, and Matt, and smoothed out the sleeves of his fresh new suit. “So, what have y’all got?”

Matt stood first, looking around the room for a moment before he spoke. 

“Just in case you guys didn’t hear, this crew has only been in the U.S. for a short time. They pretty much run the game over in the U.K., and a lot of other parts of Western Europe. In the short time they’ve been here, they’ve managed to take down three elite gangs- FunHaus, The Grumps, and even RWBY. Judging from that, and from what I’ve heard on the streets, they’re coming after major gangs in the Los Santos area, since this is kind of the gang capital of the Southwestern United States. And it doesn’t take a genius to figure out they’re coming for us next.” Matt sat back down, leaning back in his chair a bit and locking eyes with Geoff. The mustachioed gent nodded his approval, looking around the rest of the room. Gus took this opportunity to raise his hand, too lazy to stand. 

“So far, the LSPD has only issued a bounty on this crew, I think they’re a little too startled to go after them directly. But it’s a huge bounty, almost as big as yours. You could potentially capture them, if they come after you, and turn them in for the bounty?” Geoff nodded again and Gus crossed his arms across his chest, indicating he was finished. 

“Not a bad idea, but I’d prefer to just take them out clean. If they’re in jail, they can still cause a lot of trouble for us, especially with the new connections they’ve made here after taking over those gangs.” Geoff stated, and received a few nods from his crew. He saw Ryan looking down at his hands, looking troubled, and Geoff stepped towards him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Ryan jumped a bit at the contact, looking up at the older gent. “What’re you holding back, Ry?” Ryan sighed, turning towards the rest of the room.

“I… I wasn’t sure at first, in fact I’m still not sure, but… I think I’ve met Brownman before. I thought his name sounded familiar, so I looked up some of my old mission files and I found him. He and I worked together a long time ago- kid was even smaller back then, but just as deadly. Ice cold, almost as cold as I can get as the Vagabond, and amazing with almost every weapon he got his hands on. He didn’t tell me much about himself when we worked together, other than he used to work as a hitman for some government agency before going rogue and working for anyone that paid. The mission was the one I was on right before you all found me, so I guess it was… almost eleven years ago? He didn’t have the pink weapons back then, so I didn’t recognize him at first, but the more I think about it, the more convinced I am that it’s the same Brownman.” 

Ryan finished, looking around the room to see a few shocked faces. Ah, right. That’s probably the most he’s ever said in front of people that weren’t Geoff or Jack. He sheepishly looked down, and Geoff squeezed his shoulder, ruffling his hair before turning away and shuffling to the whiteboard and adding a few bullet points to Brownman’s profile. He capped the dry erase marker, twirling it between his fingers as he turned back to the group.

“Alright, this is good. Hopefully these guys will be pretty easy to find out about. With that stunt they pulled out in broad daylight yesterday, I’m guessing my hopes are gonna be right. Everyone, keep your ear to the ground. Matt, keep doin’ what you do, maybe scope out some potential jobs for us, just to assure the public knows that attack didn’t faze us at all. Gus, try to update me whenever you can about that bounty, and whatever else the Los Santos PD is up to. Burnie, how are those weapons I asked for last night?”

“They should be coming in any time now- probably early afternoon, I made them the priority.” Burnie replied quickly, looking up from his phone. Geoff smiled, nodding.

“Thanks dude. OK, so, like I said, just keep a low profile, and keep your eyes on the streets. Any time one of them takes a step outside I wanna know about it. You all can go.” 

Everyone stood, mumbling among themselves, and left the meeting room, save Ryan and Jack. Geoff walked over to the table they were sitting at and threw himself across the surface of it, letting out a long, dramatic sigh. Ryan smiled shoving the man’s feet away from his face, and Jack absentmindedly threaded her fingers through the man’s hair, watching his face carefully. 

Geoff was about to speak when his phone began to ring, catchy rock music startling the three of them from their happy moment. Geoff slid his phone out of his pocket, holding it above his face to see the caller ID.

“Unknown…? I’m gonna put ‘em on speaker.” The other two nodded, and Geoff answered the call, quickly putting the phone into speaker mode. “Yyyellow?” He drawled, eyes lazy and half lidded. 

“Oi, Geoff!” A chipper British voice squawked on the other end and Geoff tensed, sitting up on the table while Jack and Ryan sat up in their seats, alert and checking their surroundings. “Wow, your number sure isn’t as easy to find as you are! I’d personally like it the other way, but whatever floats your boat, bud!”

“What do you want, kid?” Geoff coldly demanded, and there was a brief silence before Gavino continued.

“Look, I just wanted to call to apologize about yesterday. My guys got a little too excited- ow! Bloody hell, what was that for?” Geoff assumed someone had hit Gavino, and he heard a rough, angry voice practically scream from a short distance away from the phone, “You fucking idiot, you’re the one that told us not to go easy!” Gavino crowed like a bird and there was the sound of a scuffle before the Brit finally spoke again, his breathing heavy. “OK, so there was a bit of a miscommunication on our end, but either way, now you know we’re here, and you’ve probably tried to guess what we want, eh?” 

Geoff didn’t reply, so Gavino continued. “Anyway, I just called because we’re having a little party in Vinewood tonight, at Achievement City. It’s gonna be bloody top. Formal attire, masks, fancy champagne, all that stuff. We put you on the VIP list, and it would be just perfect if you and your two little puppy dogs could make it! We’ll get plastered, maybe dance a bit, and me n’ the Hellraisers will give you our offer. How about it? No funny business, I swear on the Queen, or the Union Jack, or something else equally British.”

Geoff was silent for a moment, staring at a wide-eyed Ryan and a disturbed Jack. They both looked at him, not offering their opinions, and he took that to mean that they’d follow whatever he did. He nodded, taking a deep breath. “We’ll think about it.” He replied, and heard Gavino let out a series of excited noises, but he hung up before the Brit could say anything more. The three of them sat in silence for a tense moment, and then Jack broke the tension, smiling up at Geoff.

“Well, it’s been awhile since we’ve had a decent party. I assume we’re going mask shopping?”

-O-

Ryan stepped out of the sleek black sports car he was driving, adjusting his suit and walking around the front to open the door for Jack. She held out her hand and Ryan took it, helping her gracefully step out of the vehicle. In the bright neon lights outside the club she looked particularly stunning, and Ryan felt a wide smile spread across his lips behind his mask. Jack brushed down the front of her fitted, empire waisted red dress, shifting and looking over her outfit, her black heels gleaming and reflecting the club’s lights. She looked up at Ryan and he could see her eyes analyzing him behind the black velvet elf mask she wore. Her hair shifted and blew in the cool night wind, looking like flames flickering around her face. 

“You’re smiling behind there.” She stated directly, looking him up and down. He suddenly felt extremely self conscious in his simple, all black suit. Pulling at his skull-shaped cuff links, he coughed, and Jack let out a short chuckle. “It’s ‘cause I’m so hot, right?” 

Ryan froze, before letting out a chuckle of his own, scratching the back of his head. “Ha! You got me!” His tone suddenly became serious, and he dropped his hand. “Really though, you look…”

“Bangin’!” Geoff exclaimed, springing out of nowhere to wrap his arm around Jack’s waist, pulling the bottom of her mask up for a short greeting kiss. He turned to Ryan, moving his hand down to hold Jack’s. “You hittin’ on my girlfriend, lil’ guy? It’s ok, I get it, I mean look at her! She’s got this amazing bod,” He motioned up and down with his hand, “And she could probably kill you twenty different ways with her bare hands. Super hot.” He let out a long cackle, and Jack elbowed him hard in the gut, causing him to bend over and wheeze. She grabbed him by the ear and dragged him back up.

“You’re such a fucking ass, Geoff.” She snarled, but ran her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck affectionately. “You’re lucky I’m even with you, you pig, so act like it.”   
Ryan cracked another smile, turning to the valet to hand the young girl his keys, and take his valet card. 

“Speaking of ass, though, just look at that one!” Ryan turned to see Geoff staring him down, and Ryan was at a loss for words. “Really, Ry, you sure don’t seem to know how to buy pants that aren’t a size too small, but I’m not gonna complain. Hell, I’d be all over you, if I didn’t have this beautiful lady here to please.” Geoff cackled again, and Ryan just rolled his eyes. Jack elbowed the older man again, turning his cackles into wheezes.

“Fucking grow up, Geoff” She scolded, not reaching to comfort him this time, the playful glint in her eye reassuring Ryan that this was just playful banter. Ryan rolled his eyes again, huffed, and turned to enter the club, Geoff and Jack following closely behind.

“Just look at it, Jackie. How can you resist?” Ryan heard Geoff whisper, before he yelped in pain. 

Ryan tried to shake Geoff’s flirtation, definitely not thinking about the way Geoff’s classic tux gripped the older gent in miraculous ways, and the way his black jackal mask made him look intimidating in a way that had Ryan’s stomach twisting. Definitely not thinking about that, nope. Instead, he focused on adjusting the earpiece in his right ear, turning it on with a short crackle. He could feel Jack and Geoff doing the same behind him, and soon he could hear Geoff’s voice in his ear. 

“OK, so remember the plan. Scope this place out, try to find the little bastards, take ‘em out quietly. No one needs to know they even existed.” Ryan nodded and slipped through the crowd over to the bar, the deep pounding of the bass rattling his bones. It was a catchy song, but something generic enough to appeal to the masses. Ryan secretly loved it. 

He finally found a spot at the bar, ordering a Diet Coke and ignoring the weird look the bartender gave him. He needed to be on his A-game. He turned and rested his back against the bar, surveying the crowd.

Geoff and Jack were already dancing, moving in time. Geoff was staring intensely into Jack’s eyes while both of them moved to the music, watching her dance gracefully around him, but Ryan could tell he also had his eyes on the surroundings, and only someone like Ryan, who knew her so well, could tell that Jack was keeping a careful watch on the two exits to the club. 

Ryan almost lost himself in watching the two of them interact before he heard a soft clearing of the throat, and looked down to see a short, supple girl, purple hair falling in waves around her cat mask. He shifted, turning to grab the drink the bartender had set behind him, and took a sip from his straw, eyeing her carefully.

“Rum and coke?” The girl inquired, her eyes flashing curiously behind her mask. Ryan allowed himself to swallow before replying. 

“Nah, I don’t drink. It’s just Diet Coke.” He had to raise his voice and lean forward to be heard over the music, and from this angle he could see her eyes widen in surprise, and then crinkle up at the edges- she was smiling.

“Well, an interesting choice, but hey, I respect it. I’m kind of a vodka girl, myself.” As if on cue, the bartender held a vodka tonic out over Ryan’s shoulder, and she leaned close into his personal space to retrieve it. She paused for a moment, looking closely at his eyes, before leaning back and taking a sip of her drink. 

“I’m Meg. And you are…?” Meg trailed off, taking another sip from her drink and looking up at him from behind the rim of her glass. 

“Ryan. Ryan Smith.” He replied smoothly, taking a sip from his own drink.

“Ryan, huh? It’s a pleasure to meet you Ryan.” Meg purred, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “What brings you to Achievement City tonight?” Ryan stared at her, cautious, until he told himself it was ok to keep playing friendly stranger.

“I just needed a night out. I haven’t really dressed up in a long time, I’ve been too busy with work. You?” He answered, finishing his Diet Coke and placing the glass back behind him.

“Pretty much the same.” She replied with a chuckle. “Except instead of work, I was busy with my boyfriend- well, ex-boyfriend now.”

“Oh. Yikes,” Ryan replied, raising his eyebrows. Meg laughed again, raising her hand to her mask as if to cover her mouth.

“Yeah, yikes is right. But I figured this was the perfect chance for me to find some fresh meat.” Meg looked him up and down as spoke and Ryan froze. Was she… Flirting with him? Ryan wanted to disprove his assumption for modesty’s sake, but she was putting out some strong signals- leaning in close to him, playing with her hair, making sure he knew she was available… 

He felt a blush rush into his cheeks and he remained silent, unsure of what to say. It had been a while since anyone flirted with him, and he feared his own flirting techniques were rusty and outdated. He was pulled out of his thoughts by another bout of laughter from Meg.

“I’m sorry, that was so super cheesy and obvious. It’s just… It’s been a while, and you’re really cute, from what I can see, my brain is kind of going to mush.” She admitted, honesty filling her eyes. Ryan waved it off, smiling, but said nothing. After a moment of silence, Meg spoke again. “Hey, do you wanna dance?” She asked, twirling her almost empty glass nervously, and Ryan nodded.

“Great!” She replied, reaching past him again to place her drink on the bar, grabbing his hand when she pulled away and leading him eagerly to the dance floor. A quick sweep of the room showed him Geoff and Jack weren’t dancing anymore, so it was probably OK if he took over the dancefloor now. Meg led them to a crowded area of the room and let go of his hand, raising her hands above her head and moving to the music, glancing up at Ryan. 

Ryan tried his best to not appear as awkward as he could, moving with her, surprised when she leaned in close and pressed up against him. He nearly choked, eyes darting over to Geoff and Jack, only to see the two of them had disappeared. Ryan began to panic, but was distracted when Meg grabbed his hands and settled them on her hips, pulling him even closer than before. The flashing lights, the loud music, the huge crowd of people, the way Meg was moving, it was all extremely overwhelming and he couldn’t focus on anything except Meg. She glanced away from him for a moment before some kind of emotion flashed across her eyes, but she quickly returned her focus to Ryan, twirling away from him and then moving gracefully behind him, Ryan watching her with his eyes. She was directly behind him when he felt something hard and metal press against his back.

“Don’t say a word, Haywood.” Meg whispered into his ear, pressing what he assumed to be a gun harder against his back. “The Lil’ Hellraisers would like to see you now.”


	3. The Three Stooges

“Fucking- just- stop, you- let go of me, asshole!” Geoff cursed, shoving the giant guard off him once he, Jack, and the guard gripping her arm had made their way through the club and up a discreet set of stairs, standing in front of a door marked ‘VIP ONLY’. The bouncer in front of the door nodded at the two guards escorting them, and then opened the door to reveal a dimly lit, lavish room. Geoff and Jack stepped inside, and the door was closed behind them. Geoff saw Jack frantically look around the room, inspecting everything. 

“The door across the room. That could be our exit. I don’t see any places to conceal weapons, no visible cameras or microphones…” She mumbled to herself, gripping Geoff’s arm strongly. He put his hand on top of hers, and she glanced up to look at him, calming a little bit under his gaze. She straightened herself and followed Geoff farther into the room, both of them inspecting the fancy furniture. There was food laid out on a table, and a full bar along the wall to their right, and in here the music was still audible, but it was a lot more subdued, adding to the secluded, privileged atmosphere.

“Man,” Geoff exclaimed, picking up a soft cushion from the couch in front of him and rubbing it on his face. “For a VIP room, this place sure is empty.”

Seconds after he said that, the door burst open and Ryan was shoved inside, followed closely by a girl with purple hair and a pistol. The young gent looked up and saw the two of them, relief flooding his face. He rushed over to them, whipping around and getting in between them and the purple hair chick.

The girl only rolled her eyes, reaching up to take off her cat mask, revealing dark eyes and a pouty set of lips, set now in a sneer. 

“God, chill out Haywood, I’m not gonna hurt mommy and daddy.” She mocked, tossing her mask onto the counter of the bar and putting her hand on her hip. “Trust me, if I wanted any of you dead, you’d already be at the bottom of a river.”

Geoff put his hand on Ryan’s shoulder, stepping in front of the young gent. 

“Who are you? Who sent you, and what do they want with us?” Geoff inquired, voice low and icy. Before the girl had a chance to respond, the door on the opposite side of the room was thrown open. Ryan whipped a knife out with speed, Jack quickly following with her own pistol, both of them standing in defensive positions in between Geoff and the door. 

In stepped three figures, and Geoff felt his pulse pick up a bit. Gavino was dressed in a sharp green suit and a smiling bird mask, gold rings and watches gleaming in the low light. Mogar stepped in after him with a dark brown suit and an intimidating bear mask, and after him came Brownman, extremely underwhelming in the exact same outfit they’d seen him in the first time they met, this time with a plain rabbit mask. The kid had what looked like a 3DS in his hands, and was pushing buttons quickly and efficiently, leaning against a near wall once he entered the room. Gavino spread his arms wide, laughing excitedly.

“Gentleman, and lady! It’s so bloody amazing to finally meet you!” Gavino reached up and slid his bird mask off, revealing an attractive face with some slight stubble, a prominent nose, and bright hazel eyes filled with excitement. His blonde hair was carefully styled, spiked up with extremely controlled chaos. Mogar lifted his mask next, revealing a shockingly young, round face, speckled with freckles, a curly mop of auburn hair settling over furrowed brows, and fiery chocolate eyes. 

Everyone in the room turned to look at the last masked member of Gavino’s crew, who was still ignoring them in favor of his game. Gavino let out a squawk, loping over to Brownman and grabbing his arm. “Come on, X-Ray, you’re ruining the cool mood! Let’s just go ahead and…” Gavino wiggled his fingers as he moved his hands up to Brownman’s mask, only to have his hands slapped away by the silent gamer. 

“Shut up, Vav, I have to save first.” The short man replied, but there was no malice in his tone. The entire room stood silently for another minute or so, until finally Brownman closed his 3DS, shoving it into his hoodie pocket. He reached up and lifted off his mask, revealing yet another soft, young face, with light stubble, and glasses framing large, watchful dark eyes. Geoff heard Ryan inhale sharply in front of him, and saw that Ryan’s shoulders were extremely tense. “Long time no see, Vagabond.” Brownman mumbled, shoving both his hands in his hoodie pocket.

Ryan reached up and took off his mask, holding it in his shaking hand. 

“Brownman.” Was all Ryan said, and the two men stared each other down for a moment before Gavino interrupted.

“X-Ray! You didn’t tell me you knew Haywood! To think you’re still keeping secrets from me, you sly bastard.” Gavino grinned, slapping Brownman on the shoulder, and that ended his and Ryan’s staring contest. The youngest man turned to Gavino with a neutral expression and shrugged.

“I knew if I told you you’d never shut up, and you’d have a million annoying questions.” He replied simply, and Gavino deflated a little bit, pouting.

“He’s fucking right, dude.” Mogar suddenly piped in with a small smile, and a voice that Geoff recognized as the one that screamed at Gavino on the phone. “You’re like, obsessed with these guys, you wouldn’t rest until you made him hate you.” Gavino made a sound of protest, but Mogar just slapped him upside the head, and the two of them began bickering loudly. Geoff could only stare, shocked at how unprofessional and young these guys were. Hell, they weren’t guys, they were practically kids. Eventually, though, Geoff had to intervene. He cleared his throat loudly, reaching up to take off his mask, tossing it to the side. Jack did the same, and everyone else in the room turned to look at Geoff.

“Are you two assholes done?” Geoff barked, and Mogar looked like he was about to lunge at him, but Gavino put a calming hand on the young man’s shoulder. 

“Oh, hell, I’m so sorry! We sometimes get a little carried away. We haven’t introduced ourselves- I’m Gavin, this angry bloke is Michael, and the quiet guy is Ray.” Geoff blinked, surprised they would openly tell him their names. He raised his hand to introduce his gang, but Gavin interrupted him. “No need to tell me your names, I know so much about you! Geoff Ramsey, son of one of the most feared mob bosses in all of the Southern United States, Jack Pattillo, the brains of the operation, and Ryan Haywood, IT guy turned mercenary. Trust me, we’re huge fans, we’ve done our research.”

Geoff tried not to scowl when Gavin called Jack the brains, despite the fact that the kid was right. It just hurt his ego a bit. But he remained composed, stepping between Jack and Ryan to hold out his hand.

“Well. It’s… interesting, to meet you all.” He said diplomatically, and Gavin rushed forward, grabbing Geoff’s hand and pumping it up and down vigorously. Once the young man released his hand, Geoff clasped his own behind his back, looking down at the Brit. “So. Why are we meeting you here tonight?” He heard Jack and Ryan finally lower their weapons behind him, and saw Michael relax a little bit, looking a little less like he was about to start a fistfight. 

“Sit, sit!” Gavin exclaimed, motioning to the various chairs and couches. Carefully, the three of them sat, close to the exit. “Can I get you anything to drink? Jack Daniels?” Geoff was surprised Gavin knew one of his guilty pleasures, and nodded. Not that he was going to drink it- he wasn't that stupid.

Ray leaned back against the wall, opening his 3DS again and returning to his game. Michael plopped himself down in a love seat across from The Gents, eyeing them all carefully. Gavin loped across the room to retrieve Geoff’s drink, speaking softly to the purple-haired girl who Geoff had almost forgotten was in the room. The girl nodded, and then left quickly. Gavin returned with Geoff’s drink in hand, and then settled down with his own drink in a chair by Michael.

“So.” Gavin began, sipping from his glass, “We’ve been trying to get in contact with you because we need your help.” Ryan and Jack turned to look at Geoff, but the older man kept his eyes locked on the Brit.

“Sure didn’t seem like it when you blew up that gas station we were at yesterday.” He spat coldly, twisting the glass in his hand. Gavin winced, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Ah, yeah, that… Look, we just needed to set an example, to make sure you knew we were there, and that you knew we meant business. No harm, no foul, right?” He smiled lopsidedly, and Ryan snorted air out of his nose, glaring at the British man.

“You gave me and my boy stitches, you ass.” He retorted, crossing his legs in front of him. Gavin looked genuinely regretful, glancing over at Michael.

“I knew you were using too many explosives, you trigger-happy bastard.” The Brit teased, only to receive a slap on the head and a snort from Ray across the room.

“Shut up asshole,” Michael spat, while Gavin rubbed the back of his head with a betrayed look. “You’re the one who told me to go all out!”

The two of them started bickering again, until Michael darted forward and grabbed Gavin in a headlock, eliciting a series of distressed squawks from the Brit. They wrestled each other to the ground, limbs and obscenities flying, and Geoff could only watch with annoyance. Ryan and Jack both turned to look at him, unsure how to proceed, and Geoff sighed, rubbing his temples. He lifted his fingers to his mouth and let out a long, shrill whistle. The two young men on the floor froze, looking up at the older man.

“Can you even try to be professional for like, more than five minutes?” Geoff inquired, one brow quirked. Gavin chuckled and shoved Michael off of him, both of them rising and smoothing out their suits before sitting back down. Gavin reached and grabbed his drink, taking a long swig and placing it back on the table next to him. Geoff gestured at him, as if to say well out with it, then. 

“I wasn't lying when we said we needed your help. You’re the top dogs here in Los Santos, hell, in most of the U.S., and we don’t have the same connections you do, especially not in the States. All we need is some firepower, and someone to help us with our plans. We’ve made a big enemy in the world, and it’s about time they were taken out. It’s simple really, and in return we won’t blast your gang off the face of the earth. Oh, and there’ll also be a substantial payoff. I’m talking in the millions.” Gavin concluded with a sly smile, folding his hands in front of him. Geoff scowled, his mouth curling into a sneer.

“And what makes you think we’d take you up on that offer, asshat? You think you can just bust onto our turf, taking out a couple of minor gangs here and there, and then demand our help? What makes you think you could possibly destroy us? We’ve been here for a decade, dude!” Geoff exclaimed, lifting both of his arms to gesture to Jack and Ryan. “We didn’t make our way to the top just to be pushed around by a couple of kids with some new toys. You’re gonna need a better reason if you want our help. Besides, we could kill your sorry ass before you had the chance to even think of a plan to take us out.”

In the flash of an eye Geoff saw Ray drop his game, reaching behind his shoulder and whipping out the bright pink sniper rifle he had strapped there, cocking it and squinting down the sight at Geoff. Ryan and Jack were fractions of a second behind Ray, Ryan sliding forward to completely block Geoff from Ray’s view with his bulk, Jack leaping forward towards Gavin, pistol drawn once again and aimed directly at the Brit’s forehead. The room fell silent, everyone tense and waiting to make a move. Geoff could see Michael clenching his fists, and Gavin swallowed slowly, appearing otherwise completely unfazed. Jack was the first to speak.

“Put the gun down now, kid, or I’ll shoot this asshole’s brains out.” She commanded, her voice as cold as ice. Ray’s glance darted between Ryan and Gavin, and Geoff saw Gavin give the young boy a small nod. He dropped his rifle to his side, putting one hand up in surrender. Jack holstered her pistol in response, both her and Ryan returning to their seats. Geoff cleared his throat before speaking.

“And if we agreed to help you? Just who are you planning on taking out with our help?” Geoff inquired, leaning back in his seat and crossing his legs.

“Monarch Labs.” Gavin replied, and Geoff raised an eyebrow. Monarch Labs was some sort of international research company, what did these kids possibly want with them? As if Gavin could see the confusion in Geoff’s eyes, he continued. “Back in the U.K., I managed to uncover their true motives and research projects. I was planning on releasing the information to the world and that made them… Unhappy, to say the least. This was about ten years ago, now, and they’ve made it their mission to take me out ever since. We had a close call about a month ago, so we decided it was time to take them down for good.”

Geoff sat in silence for a moment, taking in the information Gavin had just presented to him. It seemed like these Monarch Labs people meant business, if they had Gavin and his crew running to another country for help. The young Brit seemed like he was telling the truth, but Geoff was still apprehensive. 

“How much money are you giving us?” He asked bluntly, and Jack tensed and sucked in a sharp breath next to him. She was clearly even less convinced than he was. But they’d discuss this later. Gavin grinned, clapping his hands together.

“So you’ll help us?” He asked, leaning forward in his seat. Geoff shook his head.

“Not yet. I need to know what we’ll be getting out of this.” The gent replied, and Gavin nodded.

“That’s understandable. We’re willing to give you forty percent of what we acquire from taking down Monarch Labs, which would come out to around twenty million dollars.” Geoff’s eyes widened, and he turned to look at Jack. The woman was staring down at her hands, deep in thought. After a moment she turned to Geoff, giving him a short nod. Geoff, in turn, faced Gavin again, and held out his hand.

“You have a deal.” He announced, and Gavin let out a cheer, reaching forward to pump Geoff’s hand excitedly.

“Oh, wow, bloody top! I promise, you won’t regret this!” He exclaimed, his sleazy grin lighting up his whole face. “Now, we need to meet up again soon and discuss how we’re going to go about this. The Monarch Labs headquarters is about a three hour flight away from here, so taking them out within the next week or so is ideal. So, how about we meet tomorrow, noon, at our apartment? It’s only a couple blocks from here, I can send you the address later. Michael, could you get in contact with Lindsay and Kdin? We’ll need them for the meeting.” He stood and continued to give his crew instructions, motioning towards the door the three of them entered through. Ray and Michael left first, and Gavin turned back to the gents, one hand on the doorknob.

“It’ll be a pleasure working with you, boys.” He announced, and then closed the door behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter for a little while! I promise I have the whole fic planned out, I'm just taking a short break from writing.


End file.
